VENUS Williams continued to shake off the rust as she cruised into the second round of Wimbledon by crushing Akgul Amanmuradova 6-3 6-1.

Just three days after turning 31, Williams hardly broke sweat as she produced a typically powerful performance to crush the world number 97 from Uzbekistan.

The five-time Wimbledon champion is playing only her second tournament since withdrawing from the Australian Open with a hip problem and improved as the match progressed.

An appearance at Eastbourne, where she reached the quarter-finals, was her first taste of action since sustaining the injury in January.

‘‘It’s always great to be back at Wimbledon. I played a few matches in Eastbourne which I think helped me to feel pretty comfortable here,’’ she said.

‘‘All in all I was pretty pleased to play today. Coming into any major there’s a little bit of tension.

‘‘I have a lot of expectations to go out there and play as I do in practice, where I’ve been hitting the ball really well.’’ Williams faces 40-year-old veteran Date-Krumm, who defeated Britain’s Katie O’Brien 6-0 7-5, in the second round.

Sixth seed Francesca Schiavone thanked the rain break as she survived a difficult clash with Jelena Dokic.

Schiavone had dropped the second set and was in obvious trouble at the start of the third, but when showers forced the players to hurry off Centre Court she had an opportunity to regain composure.

The 30-year-old Italian returned to tie up a 6-4 1-6 6-3 victory, quashing the prospect of losing her Wimbledon opener for the second year in a row.

Schiavone confirmed she feared the worst as Dokic fought her way back to level the match, so the chance to talk to coach Corrado Barazzutti was priceless.

‘‘For me it was fantastic because I started the third set and I couldn’t understand why she was playing so aggressively and I couldn’t move her,’’ Schiavone said.

‘‘So at the end I said, ’Something is not working’.

‘‘Of course, when they (closed) the roof, I went back to the locker room and I spoke with Barazzutti.

‘‘He said something to me, something that was really important.

So I came back and I was playing better.’’ Last year’s Wimbledon runner- up Vera Zvonareva survived a first-round scare to defeat promising young American Alison Riske 6-0 3-6 6-3.

The second seed is expected to mount a serious title challenge after her run to the final 12 months ago, where she lost to Serena Williams, but she will have to raise her game.

Zvonareva admitted she had been severely tested by an opponent ranked 115th in the world but she was pleased with the way she turned things around.

‘‘I’m really happy I was able to pull it off in the end,’’ said the 26-year-old.

‘‘She played some good tennis but I tried to stay focused.

I had some ups and downs but I’m really happy.

‘‘I lost my concentration for a bit but I always fight for every point and I was able to pick it up in the third set.’’ Britain’s Katie O’Brien admits she may quit after a straight-sets defeat to Japanese veteran Kimiko Date- Krumm.

O’Brien, Britain’s number five, crumbled 6-0 7-5 to her 40- year-old opponent on Court Three. The first-set humiliation lasted a mere 17 minutes.

Defeat marked the seventh time that O’Brien has failed to make the second round of the Championships in eight attempts.

When asked whether she planned to return for a ninth crack at Wimbledon, O’Brien said: ‘‘I hope so. It’s no fun at the moment, though, so I would have to be prepared to make some big improvements if I’m going to continue what I’m doing.’’